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Gunmen have seized over 300 pupils and educators in one of the biggest mass kidnappings in modern Nigerian history, as stated by a Christian organization on the weekend.

Escalating Crisis in Educational Institutions

The Friday morning attack on St Mary's co-educational school in western Nigeria happened just a short time after gunmen attacked a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, abducting 25 female students.

Initial reports had indicated 227 individuals were taken, but revised figures emerged after a detailed assessment determined that 303 students and 12 instructors had been abducted.

The taken children, ranging between eight and 18 years, constitute nearly half of the school's overall student body of 629.

Official Response and Safety Actions

State officials have announced that intelligence departments and police are presently conducting a comprehensive census to establish the precise number of missing people.

In reaction to the increasing safety fears, the local authorities has ordered the shutting of all schools in the state, with neighboring states following comparable preventive actions.

Additionally, the national education department has ordered the provisional closure of 47 boarding secondary schools across the country.

President Bola Tinubu has postponed international commitments, including attendance at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to focus on addressing the crisis.

Latest Security Events

The school kidnappings constitute the latest in a sequence of safety breaches that have shaken the nation, including an attack on a place of worship in western Nigeria where gunmen shot dead two people and abducted many congregation members during a live-streamed service.

These events have taken place against the backdrop of global focus on Nigeria's security situation.

Historical Context

Nigeria remains scarred by the legacy of the large-scale abduction of almost 300 schoolgirls by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a decade ago, with several of those girls still missing.

Eyewitness Accounts

In a disturbing recording circulated by Christian groups, a frightened worker recounted hearing the noise of motorcycles and cars before hearing "violent banging" on multiple entrances of the compound.

"Children were weeping," the witness stated, describing her fear while looking for access to the section where the screaming was most intense.

The local Catholic authority stated that the "attackers acted violently and without interruption for almost three hours, moving through dormitories."

Public Reaction and Concerns

At the same time, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, concerned parents were collecting their children from schools following the closure directive.

One mother, a 40-year-old healthcare worker, voiced her disbelief at the magnitude of the abduction, questioning how 300 children could be abducted simultaneously.

She concluded that the "government is not doing enough to address insecurity," and voiced approval for international assistance to "resolve this crisis."

Ongoing Security Issues

For a long time, heavily armed bandit groups have been carrying out killings and abductions for ransom in rural areas of northern and central Nigeria, where government control is limited.

While nobody has claimed responsibility for the recent incidents, bandit gangs seeking ransom payments often attack schools in countryside locations where protection is weak.

These groups maintain camps in extensive woodland areas spanning several states in the west of Nigeria.

While these criminals have no political motives and are mainly driven by financial gain, their increasing alliance with jihadist groups from the northeastern region has become a major cause of worry for authorities and experts alike.